Rainbow Six: Summary and book reviews of Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy, plus links to an excerpt from Rainbow Six and a biography of Tom Clancy.

Over the course of nine novels, Tom Clancy's "genius for big, compelling plots" and his "natural narrative gift" (The New York Times Magazine) have mesmerized hundreds of millions of readers and established him as one of the preeminent storytellers of our time. Rainbow Six, however, goes beyond anything he has done before. At its heart is John Clark, the ex-Navy SEAL of Without Remorse and well-known from several of Clancy's novels as "the dark side of Jack Ryan," the man who conducts the secret operational missions Ryan can have no part of. Whether hunting warlords in Japan, druglords in Colombia, or nuclear terrorists in the United States, Clark is efficient and deadly, but even he has ghosts in his past, demons that must be exorcised. And nothing is more demonic than the peril he must face in Rainbow Six: a group of terrorists like none the world has ever encountered before, a band of men and women so extreme that their success could literally mean the end of life on this earth as we know it. It is Tom Clancy's most shocking story ever---and closer to reality than any government would care to admit. As Clancy takes us through the twists and turns of Rainbow Six, he blends the exceptional realism and authenticity that are his hallmarks with intricate plotting, knife-edge suspense, and a remarkable cast of characters. This is Clancy at his best---and there is none better.

Media Reviews

The New York Times Book Review - Charles Salzberg ...meticulously researched and carefully plotted--even though the conspiracy he writes of seems farfetched.   People Magazine Clancy's characters are stiff as a starched uniform and no deeper than a foxhole, and their dialogue comes straight from the can marked 'John Wayne.' But we know that already. The reason to read Clancy is his elaborate descriptions of the latest high-tech gadgetry and his bolt-action mayhem. There's enough of both to keep readers turning Rainbow's 740 pages right up until its jolting denouement.   Publishers Weekly Two years ago, Executive Orders, which thrust Jack Ryan into the Oval Office, raised the bar for its immensely popular author. This first Clancy hardcover since then, though a ripping read, matches its predecessor neither in complexity nor intensity nor even, at 752 pages, length, despite a strong premise and some world-class action sequences.   Booklist - Roland Green Those who have not made their peace with Clancy's political agenda and fondness for technical detail (e.g., what happens to a human head struck by a sniper round) can again steer clear in good conscience. Those who recognize Clancy as inventor of a genre of which he remains grand master will again stampede to read his latest effort, doubtless in equally good conscience.   Kirkus Reviews ... the charged clouds of good and evil build toward a typically foreshadowed and explosive Clancy finish. Namely, a supremely powerful biotech company is led by a bonkers (yet well-spoken) environmentalist with the vision for a Project even more luminously insane than any frothy megaloid plot hatched by James Bond's archenemy SPECTRE: a murderous ecoproject that may get underway during the Olympic games in Sydney, Australia, and involve the destruction of almost all human life, merely to insure the survival and greater safety of Nature itself. No disappointments here, but an unusually sumptuous cut of steak can't hide the familiarity of the menu.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by Mike Stokes
A great read for fans of action, military or Clancy novels in general.
Of the Clancy novels that I have read I have to say that this is my favorite. Although the characters can seem a little shallow and the plot is very far fetched, this is simply a terrific book. I am sure that critics believe this to be one of...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Ryan Tumbler
The one where Clancy went bad
As popular as "Rainbow Six" was, to me it is this book, and not "The Bear and the Dragon," in which Clancy went bad. There, I said it. Tom Clancy is an author I have always appreciated for his complex and realistic portrayal of war, the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Brad
The best of the best
Clancy has become one of the world's best government/war authors ever and this book just confirms that. Rainbow Six has so many twists, gut-wrenching chapters, and so much detail in everything. READ THIS BOOK!!!

Rated of 5 by harry longstick
this book was excellent!

Rated of 5 by Paul
An Amazing Book, for a 8th grader not too hard.

Rated of 5 by Alex
This book is very good. One of calncys best works.

...62 More Reader Reviews

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